Upside to a Foolish Bet
by Drakky28293
Summary: Stranded in a Muggle inhabited town with his best friend stuck in Animagus form, James must rely on the kindness of a Good Samaritan. Oneshot. AU. Complete. Rated T.


**AN: Everyone says that the Harry Potter fandom is the gateway fandom in the world of literature. People get exposed to a treasure trove of young adult fiction through this series. And that stands to be 100% true in my case. For years now I've wanted to give back in a small way to this fandom, by writing something worthy of the seven masterpieces crafted by the queen herself, JKR. But I've always held back because I never could think of 'just the right plot' or 'just the right twists' or 'just the right emotions'. Now as everyone knows, the 'Harry Potter' category of books has the most fanfiction written for on this site. A whopping 678k regular stories and 29470 crossovers, to which new ones are being added constantly! Now with numbers as great as these, how can one hope to make their mark? I could sit and think till I'm frustrated enough to yank my hair out by the fistfuls but I never seem to come up with an idea that seems 'original' in some way. And then suddenly, yesterday, I had this marvelous idea. It just occurred to me and it seems almost tailor made for this fandom.**

**So, ladies and gentlemen on ! I, Drakky28293, after years and years of deliberation, am attempting to give back a bit to the fandom that means so much to me, with my first Harry Potter fanfiction.**

**Virtual cookies to anyone who read all that. Slow applause for your patience.**

**Ok, about the story now. A foolishly made bet under the influence of Firewhisky leads James to be wandering, quite lost, in a Muggle inhabited neighborhood with his best friend Sirius Black who is facing a 'paw'sibble malfunction with his Animagus form. A kindly red headed vet, Lily Evans, with mesmerizing eyes and skilful hands, steps in to save the day. This would be AU because Lily is a Muggle even though James and Sirius are wizards. OOC-ness is bound to happen. Rated T, just to be on the safe side. Enjoy reading folks!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing**

"Sirius you absolute wanker! My arms are about to give out!" James Potter groaned as he shifted the weight of the shaggy black dog he was carrying. The dog gave a strange sound in response as if it were trying to laugh. Then it whimpered in pain. A few drops of blood hit the ground, glistening under the harsh light of the street lamps. James' worried face turned more ashen as he looked around for any sign that could be a Portkey sent by Remus.

"Padfoot, never are you to take on a bet against Moony!" James muttered as sweat streaked down his lean face, despite the cool November air. There he was, wandless, in the heart of some-or-the-other Muggle inhabitation, goodness knows how far away from Godric's Hollow, with his best friend stuck in his Animagus form. His wits were quickly leaving him and seeing Sirius bleeding was not helping him keeping the panic reigned in.

"Remind me again how we got into this mess?" he finally leaned against a lamp post and set the dog down. Barely noticing his aching arms, he checked the wound on the dog's neck. Sirius was lucky he wasn't bleeding out of his jugular. Uttering a few choice curses, he tried to staunch the flow of blood with his handkerchief. Sirius gave an apologetic whine. James stroked the thick shaggy fur with a hand that only belied the slightest tremble and sat down on the pavement next to him. There seemed only one thing to do- to wait it out.

Things had started innocently enough a few nights ago when the Marauders had caught up for a drink at their favorite teenage haunt, The Hog's Head. Sirius, under the influence of one too many glasses of Firewhiskey declared that his Animagus form was scary enough to pass off as the dreaded Grim, an ominous dog supposed to bring death on people who set their eyes on it. Remus challenged him to scare a family of Muggles in his Animagus form. Sirius accepted the challenge and Remus told James to accompany him to see if he completed the challenge. There were a few terms though. They would be wandless, ergo, helpless, in a completely Muggle occupied neighborhood. Remus would send a Portkey at midnight.

Everything started to go wrong just as they reached their destination. Sirius chose to go for a large bungalow which was guarded by a pair of pitbulls. James had to turn the house's garden hose on the trio of dogs to break up the fight. And now Sirius was bleeding at the neck and shoulder, it was barely 8 pm and James was at the end of his tether.

Just then a bright beam of light hit him right in the eyes. James shielded his eyes and looked up at the source. It was a car. James knew nothing about these Muggle contraptions so he didn't pay much attention. The driver's side door was thrown open and a concerned, distinctly female voice called out, "Sir! Are you alright?"

A petite woman came up to James. She had fiery red hair and was clad in practical jeans, work shirt and rubber soled shoes. Her eyes, James noticed, as she knelt down and regarded them, were almond shaped and bright emerald green. Freckles dusted her features which made her look young but James had a feeling she was about his age.

"Is this your dog sir?" she asked, a mixture of worry and authority in her voice. Her hand reached out and Sirius growled at her. James was about to retort that she take her hand away but to his surprise, the red head admonished the dog and stroked him. Sirius looked almost as bewildered as James felt.

"Who… Who are you?" he cleared his throat and asked her. His training as an Auror made him naturally wary of strange people.

"My name is Lily Evans. Is this your dog? What's he called?" the woman, _Lily_, James repeated to himself, told him, brusque and business like.

"Hey you can't just go about touching strange dogs like that!" James told her, panicking just a bit. It wouldn't do if a Muggle broke the International Statute of Secrecy. He and Sirius could stand to lose their jobs.

"Sir, this dog is severely injured and he needs attention," Lily insisted, gently probing Sirius' matted shaggy fur, checking for broken bones. She examined his teeth and gums without a second glance at the deadly sharp canines. She breathed a sigh of relief. "He's only injured this one place. Come with me" she told him, getting up and holding out a hand to James.

James was even more dumb founded "Look, miss, er, Lily… I can't just follow you this way…" he began

Anger snapped into the green eyes, turning them darker. "Sir, I assure you, I am fully aware of what I am doing! I am a licensed veterinary surgeon!" she snapped.

Dimly recalling his Muggle Studies classes at Hogwarts from almost a decade ago, James realized she was an Magizoology Healer; the Muggle equivalent of one, at least. He blanched. Muggle Healers, _doctors_, he reminded himself, cut open their patients and tried to find out what was wrong. No way was he going to let that happen to his best friend.

"Doctor… Evans, I'm sorry, but you can't take this dog. I won't have him being cut up by you," James said firmly.

Lily sighed. What an absolute nutter, she thought to herself. "Sir, either you let me treat this dog's wounds or I call the RSPCA and book you for animal cruelty and have the dog taken away" she said firmly

James buried his face in his hands. No way could he afford to get the Muggle authorities involved. Dumbledore would have his hide. He needed a place to lie low and Sirius needed to get that wound looked at. This headstrong woman with the enticing eyes seemed to be their best choice.

He extended a hand. "James. You can call me James" he said. She ignored the hand and to lifted Sirius' listless form. Before James could say "Let me help you!" she had carried the giant shaggy dog and gently deposited him on the backseat of her car.

"You may sit with him James" she said in a voice which was clearly an order, not a request. James hurried forward, trying to wipe the dumbstruck look off his face.

-x-

Lily drove them to a small cottage which looked charming from the outside and had been cleverly converted to a small scale veterinary hospital from within.

This time James was determined not to come off as an addled twit. He carried Sirius all the way to the operating room. Sirius whined anxiously at the sight of all the metal in the room.

"I know man, I know. We're stuck in this situation ok? Don't worry, if she does something to you, we'll get you looked at in St. Mungo's the second the Portkey arrives," James muttered under his breath. If dogs could roll their eyes in disdain, Sirius was doing just that.

Lily entered the room behind him, looking professional and efficient in a starched, spotless white coat. She was pulling on a pair of gloves.

"So, what's he called?" she asked James without looking at him, examining Sirius' wound.

"He, ah, his name is Sirius Black" James said, marveling at how the lights, _electricity; Merlin bless these Muggles_, made the woman's hair shine in fiery shades. Orange, titian, red, red-brown. It was hypnotizing.

"How old is… Sirius Black?" she asked, listening to the dog's heart beat with a stethoscope.

"27 years," he blurted out before he could stop himself.

"You have a sense of humor James," Lily smiled. "But I need his real name for this patient information sheet," she motioned to a clipboard. "In fact, why don't you just have a seat in the waiting area outside while I tend to this big boy's wounds"

James furrowed his brows, accepted the clipboard and allowed himself to be escorted outside.

-x-

She was being paranoid, Lily told herself. But something seemed off with this pair. Not that she was boasting or anything, but she was a fairly eminent vet in the area. Well liked, well respected and almost any pet owner who lived in the town had brought their furred and feathered companions to see her at least once. Yet she hadn't ever seen these two before. Maybe they had just moved in.

She voiced her thought to the dog, knowing that he probably couldn't understand a word, but she also knew that keeping up a calm conversational tone quelled an animal's first instinct to panic.

The dog responded with a sound that could almost pass off as laughter. Lily smiled in response.

"Well now, aren't you a handsome darling? But that looks like quite a nasty wound here. Someone really managed to sink their teeth into ya," she said examining the wound. It needed to be cleaned thoroughly.

She expertly trimmed and shaved the hair around the wound. The dog whimpered, as if sorry to lose the fur. "You have a marvelous coat," Lily admired, continuing her ministrations. "James must take good care of you" The dog made the laugh-bark sound again.

"Now you have to be a brave boy, this is going to sting," Lily warned, pouring a generous amount of antiseptic on a piece of cotton. She swiftly began cleaning the wound, and as expected, Sirius let out a howl of pain and misery.

The doors flew open making Lily jump. James ran in like a dervish, his hair disarrayed and his hazel eyes wide. "Is he ok? Is Sirius ok?" he demanded.

"Perfect. We need you here," Lily motioned him to come closer, ignoring his query. "Here, hold his legs like this," she demonstrated, "So he doesn't struggle. I need to dress the wound," she fetched some gauze, tape and some more medicines.

James did as he was instructed. Lily was surprised by his co-operation. Not that she couldn't usually get it from her patients' owners, but James looked like the type to challenge authority and one-up people where he could.

"You two seem incredibly close," Lily said, by way of conversation.

"He's my best friend," James said.

Lily gave a small smile. She dressed the wound and declared "All better now" with some satisfaction. Sirius wagged his tail but then he turned his head and tried to get at the dressed patch.

"Bad boy! Stop that right now!" Lily exclaimed. She opened a cupboard and got out a cardboard collar. James stifled a snort when she fastened it around Sirius' neck. The dog's tail immediately drooped between his legs and he looked at James with resentment and anger. James couldn't keep it in. He began guffawing in earnest.

"They do look adorable in their ruffs," Lily winked at him and handed him a prescription. Her short monologue of 'antibiotics' and 'redressing the wound' made absolutely no sense to James but he nodded anyway.

"Well, that will be all," Lily smiled a truly radiant smile at him and he couldn't help but smile back. Suddenly he realized he had no Muggle money on him. With an embarrassed air he swept a hand through his hair and asked, "How much do I owe you Dr. Evans?"

"Lets just chalk it up to my good deed for the day," she patted his shoulder. James was immensely relieved.

"So, I should be going now," he said, lifting Sirius off the examination/ operation table.

"Let me walk you out. Lovely night" Lily said.

Just as James opened her cottage door and motioned her out before him, he noticed a blue flash at the corner of his eye. There stood a bag of garbage at the road's shoulder he'd sworn wasn't there a moment before. The Portkey!

"Thank you Lily," James said in a heartfelt voice. Giving in to the feelings that had been tugging at him all evening, he leaned in and captured her lips in a soft kiss. The smell of antiseptic clung to her but her lips tasted of strawberries. Drawing back almost reluctantly, he brushed a hand through her hair. Lily's green eyes looked unfocused.

"Don't, ah, mention it," she said dreamily. She went back inside the cottage, closing the door with a soft click. Sirius gave a rougish bark and James ran a hand through his hair. "Oh shut up. You're the one that looks like the idiot in that collar" he said with a hint of embarrassment. "Lets get back and give Moony a good kick up his arse," he declared, pointing to the garbage bag which was starting to glow blue. They lunged forward.

-x-

Lily picked up the clipboard that James had flung to the ground in the waiting area, presumably when he heard his dog howling. Not a single field had been filled. Instead, there was something scrawled across the top in an untidy hand

_Lilly. Pretty name. I'd like to get to know you better someday. I nicked one of your business cards. Terribly sorry about that. Actually, no I'm not. You'll hear from me as soon as I understand how a fellytone works_

Lily laughed, said "Fellytone?" a few times and switched off the lights in the surgery, her lips still tingling from James' kiss

-Fin-

**AN: Please tell me you liked it. It seems a bit lame to me now that I read it. Anyway, I live for reviews! Till next time, take care everybody!**

**~Drakky28293**


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